Ombre Hair Dye Lampshade DIY

If you're anything like me, the rapid approach of your thirtieth birthday will lead you down to the beauty supply store, where you will attempt to reclaim your lost punk youth by dying a hot pink streak in your boring old hair. This should stave off any pending crises for the time being, but it will also leave you with a nearly-full tub of hot pink hair dye left over.

And if you're anything like me, you hate the idea of wasting a nearly-full tub of hot pink hair dye!

(or two of them)

So what do you do?

Well, you know that boring white Ikea lampshade that you got cause it was like, four dollars and good enough to put next to your bed on your hand-me-down bedside table cause no one ever sees that part of your house anyway?

That's the one.

Wouldn't your life be so much brighter if it was a beautiful hot pink ombre instead?

Oh yes it would!

I thought so. 

This project is so easy and quick. And since you are using things you already own, it costs nothing and you get to feel really pleased with yourself. (Of course if for some reason you don't have a nearly-full tub of hot pink hair dye lying around, you could always use plain old Rit Dye from the grocery store, and the process would be the same, and I wouldn't judge you one bit.)

Either way, let's begin.

1) First, grab a basin, some rags and a lot of newspaper:

You can wear gloves, or you can be hardcore. The choice is yours.

2) Fill the tub with about two inches of warm water, then dunk the shade, turning it all around to wet the fabric thoroughly.

3) Scoop out a dollop of dye (I used a hair tinting brush for this, but you could just as easily use a spoon) and stir it into the water. Mix well for a couple of minutes to dissolve any lumps.

 

4) Test to see if you've got the color you want by dipping a strip of cotton fabric into your dye bath. Add either more dye or more water to adjust your color.

5) Now the fun part! Place your lampshade carefully into your dye bath and watch the pink water start to wick up into the damp fabric. Oooooh magic!

6) Let the shade hang out for a second in the dye bath, then take it out and put it on your massive stack of newspaper to let the dye set for a few minutes.

Don't worry, it will even out in the next step.

7) While the dye is setting, dump out some of your hyper-concentrated bath and add some plain water until the tub is about five inches full. Now immerse your shade in that deeper, lighter bath. This is the secret to making everything all ombre-lovely.

8) Finally, take that baby out of its bathwater and let dry.

yay!

You're done! Now just slap it on its base and plug it in, you pink-haired whiz!

Look what you made.